Covert Beginnings
by LaLavande
Summary: Michael & Fiona's daughter follows in her parents' footsteps, much to their dismay. - - - Six chapters plus a note are now posted. - - It was written by my daughter when she was 11. Try it - you might be pleasantly surprised! COMPLETE.
1. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER ONE**

**Unexpected Teammate**

Rushing down the driveway of 42 Larson Way, I smiled as angry shouts came from the house itself. "A job well done," I said to myself. I wasn't prepared for what happened next, though. Glancing behind me, I saw someone storm out of the house with a gun. Frantically, I turned the corner and hopped on my bike, pedaling as fast as I could. I took the first bike trail there was and then rode casually. I looked behind me and saw the car from 42 Larson Way going a little over the speed limit on the road behind me. I sighed with relief and headed home.

"I just wanted to help!" I shouted defensively.

"I told you to stay _OUT _of our work!" yelled my dad, Michael. Just then Fiona, my mom, and Sam, my uncle, walked in.

"Claire Madeline Westen, where _HAVE _you been?" Fiona scolded after getting over her shock that I was here, at the loft.

"We were driving all over Miami looking for you!" Sam exclaimed, looking relieved. Had they been worried about me? They were looking for me? How long had I been gone? I glanced down at my watch. 4:06! I finished school almost 2 hours ago!

"Claire, where were you?" cried my mom, coming up to me. My dad answered before I did.

"She was snooping around Taylor Parker's house," Michael said, looking disapprovingly at me.

"The conman that cheated our client, Stacy?" Fiona asked, horrified.

"Yup," he answered.

Just then, Michael's phone rang, so I grabbed his yogurt and went to talk to Sam. The stolen yogurt didn't exactly improve the angry mood my dad was in, but I spooned happily away at the blueberry yogurt anyway.

"So what exactly did you do, Claire?" Sam inquired.

"I put a virus in the e-mail from his manager, so when he opened it, the virus started clearing out all their dealings together and making it look like his manager wanted him dead."

"Whoa," Sam narrowed his eyes suspicously. "Where did you get that insanely perfect idea from?"

"Well, from you guys, mostly. I heard you say that you were trying to get Taylor to think his boss wanted to kill him. The rest I planned myself," I replied.

"From us?! You were at Fiona's and we were at the loft when Mike and I talked about it! And we told Fi while you were in school!" Sam cried out.

"I know. I planted a bug in the loft. It's behind the fridge. I was listening to it at Mom's house."

"You what?!" Sam said. He went over to the fridge and started to move it.

"Sam, what are you doing?" Fiona said.

"Usually beers are in the fridge, not behind it," Michael said, looking at him strangely over a yogurt. Sam stared with a puzzled look at the empty wall.

"Uh . . . right," he said, pushing the fridge back and walking over to me.

"I moved it," I confessed to him, biting my lip to stop from laughing.

"Moved what?" Michael asked, narrowing his eyes at me.

"A listening device," Sam growled.

"A what?! Behind the fridge?!" my dad yelled, glaring furiously in my direction.

"Yes," I whispered meekly.

"Claire!" my mom gasped, "To your room!"

"I just wanted to help Stacy! She has a daughter, Kayla, in my grade, you know! She's 9, a year or 2 younger than me and everyone else in 5th grade! Plus, she's almost at the top of the class! She's really smart and deserves a good education! But that nasty conman Taylor ruined her chance!" And with that I stormed off to my "room."

My so-called room was a couch (which I slept on), a beanbag chair, a desk, and a lamp, all surrounded by curtains. I tied the curtains closed, threw myself down on the couch, and sighed before getting to work. Eleven years of being the child of an ex-super spy and an explosives expert helped me come up with the next part of my plan.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

**School Day**

When your parents are shooting up bad guys and blowing up buildings for a living, they're not going to want to do Parent Job Conference Day. You know, that day where all the kids' parents come in and talk about their jobs. Well, you can't exactly have someone come in and talk about making bombs in front of a 5th grade class, anyway. You also can't have your grandma come in and talk about what kind of disease she might have while puffing away on a cigarette. That means you have to be ready with a cover story when people ask why your parent didn't come, and what their job is.

I was rehearsing that story in front of my grandma's house while I wheeled my bike out. Just then a car pulled into the driveway, and I immediately became suspicious. I picked up a good size rock in one hand, and got ready to swing my backpack with the other. I stalked up to the car and got into a fighting stance. The door opened and a man stepped out. I thwacked him with my backpack and yelled, "Friend or foe?"

"Easy, Claire! Michael certainly has taught you well!" cried Nate, my uncle. He laughed. "I'm a friend!"

I tossed the rock to the ground and hugged him. Then I glanced at my watch and realized it was time to go.

"I'll see you later," I said, getting my bike and heading for the edge of the driveway.

"Yeah, you will. I'm coming to your Parent Job Conference Day," he called to me. I smiled real, real big for him before peddling off. I was _SO_glad someone would finally come to that for me. Plus, it would be fun to hear about Uncle Nate's limo company. Maybe I could put my plans off 'til after visiting him.

No, my plan must take action right after school. No delay. Not even for yogurt.

I got my tray and headed for a lunch table. I was going to sit down by Corrine and Francis, but then I saw Kayla sitting by herself. I sat down next to her, instead.

"Hey," I said. She nodded in response. Noticing how she was poking at her food with a sick expression, I asked, "Are you all right?"

"Yeah," she looked up and managed a weak smile, "I'm fine."

"No, you're not," I said firmly. "What's the matter?"

"I wish my mom would come in and talk," she mumbled. I was instantly sympathetic. I had had that kind of feeling my whole life, but Kayla had probably never felt it before.

"Well, if you want, uh, I could, um . . ." I took a breath, "have my uncle talk on your behalf." It took an effort to say it at first, but then I realized that it was more important for Kayla to have someone to talk for her than it was for me. That is, because I had a cover up story and people know that my parents never come in, but Kayla isn't prepared to dodge questions about her life and she probably doesn't want to talk about it.

"Really?" She looked up and grinned.

"Of course!" I smiled back. "Is there anything else I could do for you?"

"Well, that's not all," she confessed. "I think I can trust you not to tell."

"No one will hear it from me," I said, growing excited. It could be about Taylor Parks! This might really help my plan.

"It's about this evil thing that happened to my mom - I can't tell what because it's personal, but there's this nasty man. . ."

It took more than a little persuasion to get Nate to talk for Kayla, but I got him to. After hearing tons of speeches from parents and relatives, including "Kayla's" uncle, it was finally dismissal time. I rushed out of school without waiting for Nate. What Kayla had told me was very useful.

She said that Parks had called her house and work a couple times, but her mom didn't answer. Finally he tried to call her with a different phone, and her mom answered without knowing it was him. He said, "Stacy, why weren't you answering my calls? Never mind, just meet me whenever you can. I've got important news." You see, he doesn't know that she found out HE cheated her yet. He's "trying" to help get her money back. Anyway, Kayla's mom said her office, today at 3:50. It was already 3:20, so grabbing my bike, I started off for Sunny Side Offices.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

**Plan Z**

"Hi, I'm here to see Miss Wilkson."

"She's on lunch break, honey. But why don't you go have a seat in her office and make yourself comfortable. She'll be back any minute."

"Thanks!" I walked away from the receptionist's desk and headed toward Kayla's mom, Miss Wilkson's office.

I slipped through the half-open door, pulled out a banilla (banana and vanilla mix) yogurt, and got to work right away. I planted a not-so-good bug in the phone, so Kayla's mom would hear something funny and Parks would want to listen. Then Parks would discover the bug; blame it on his boss, Jayson Howard, and rush out to 'settle things'. Hopefully.

I left the office and returned to the front desk. I told the lady I had to be home in 5 minutes and that I would be back on Thursday. Then I left and headed around to the back of the building and used my pocketknife's screwdriver to open the air vent. I climbed in and was soon above Miss Wilkson's office, just in time to see her walk in followed by Taylor Parks. As soon as Miss Wilkson was seated, I dialed her number on my cell phone and put on a businesslike air and an accent.

"Hello, Sunny Side Offices, Miss Wilkson speaking."

"Howdy! I'm Minnie Grey," I said Texas style.

"Excuse me Miss Grey, but I'm having some issues with my phone, could I call you back?"

"Sure, any time." Click. I hung up and slid back over Miss Wilkson's air vent. I had had to move so she and Parks didn't hear me talking from the vent.

"Issues? What issues?" grunted Parks.

"There's a loud background disturbance."

"Huh? Let me see," Parks took the phone and listened. "Probably just an electric problem." I could see his face darken. "One second, my phone's vibrating." He stepped out into the hallway while I slid over to the hallway vent. His phone was not vibrating. He took it out and called his manager.

"What are you doing, Boss? You act like you want me dead and plant a bug in the phone of the woman I ripped off! You trying to get me killed?!" He paused, listening to the voice on the other end. Then he interrupted: "You know what? I think you are trying to kill me! I'm through with you! I'm ending this right now. And then I'm going after you!"

This was not what I had expected.

Parks pulled out a gun and cocked it. I was barely keeping calm. Looks like I was going to Plan Z, which involved getting grounded. I pulled out my cell phone and clicked contacts. When I got to Dad, I hit dial.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

**Leaky Faucet**

Fortunately, Kayla's mom had managed to slip past the angry Taylor Parks and into the bathroom. I just had to make sure she stayed there, or got out without getting killed. I made sure no one was around before sneaking out of the air vent and into the hallway.

I crept into the bathroom and went up to a faucet. I had tried this with Francis when we were waiting for her dad, who also worked at Sunny Side Offices. I checked to make sure it was the leaky faucet Francis and I had found. When I confirmed that it was, I pressed my palm into the spout. With my free hand, I alternated between spinning both handles in the opposite direction.

At first it was hard, but then it got easier. Water started spouting up. I stopped when the water was at my chin and I could almost pull the handles off. Then I took a bunch of paper towels and pressed down on the leak, put soap on the handles, put the handles back in place, and turned the water the other way. This made the problem even more catastrophic, because now the whole bathroom was a mess, with soapy water suds spewing like crazy, and the leaky faucet spitting up, out, **_and _**down all at the same time.

I sprinted out of the bathroom and ran to the clerk's desk. I cried fake tears and told her I had accidentally made the faucet go berserk. She was puzzled to see I was back, so I blubbered out that I had forgotten my phone and had come back to get it. Then I was washing my hands when the faucet got all messed up. She quickly sent the janitors in to clean up the mess while a small crowd of people formed outside the bathroom door. Now there were plenty of witnesses, so Parks couldn't shoot Kayla's mom since the bathroom and the crowd were right next door.

Just then Sam and Fiona came in.

"Stay out of this, Claire, I don't want you getting hurt," my mom said firmly. Then, through her Bluetooth, "There's a crowd, Michael." A pause, and then, "Do we have to just stun him? Couldn't we put a silencer on a gun, or flood the room with gas?" Another pause, then a reluctant sigh. "All right."

Just then, Miss Wilkson came running toward us.

"Why are you guys here?" she whispered franticly.

"He's got a gun. He was going for you," Sam said quietly.

She looked back and forth from my uncle, to my mom, and then my uncle again. Then she exploded into a loud sobbing fit. Just like that leaky faucet.

"It's okay Stacy. It's okay," soothed Fiona.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

**Cleaning Up**

Whoosh! THUD! A tranquilizer dart hit Parks in the shoulder and Fiona and Sam rushed in. Then my dad squeezed out of the air vent above Miss Wilkson's office with a tranquilizer gun. Sam told everyone Parks had fainted and that we were taking him to his house.

As soon as we were in the car, we took Parks to a warehouse that his boss had used and dumped him there. We left in time to see his boss pull in to clear out – get rid of the evidence. We had already called the police, and soon the two men were arrested.

The whole time, the car was silent. All that went on was a nod about the plan, and disapproving looks shot my way. Well, at least the job was done.

We picked up my bike from Sunny Side Offices, and I rode home. I did this slowly, thinking about what would happen at home. Finally, I was there.

I climbed up the stairs to the loft and opened the door. Sam, Michael, and Fiona looked my way. I took a breath and prepared to get the worst scolding of my life.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

**New and Improved**

"Hey," I shuffled in and headed for my room. As I suspected, someone intervened.

"Claire, sit down," my dad said. I turned around and slowly walked to a chair. There was an uncomfortable silence for a long time. A really long time. I was really feeling overwhelmed by silently doing nothing but watch my dad stab his yogurt with a spoon, my mom quietly tap the table and stare at the floor, and my uncle adjust his grip on an empty beer bottle and stare into space, so I had to break the silence.

"Um . . . when did we . . .um . . . get strawberry banana yogurt, Dad? It's my favorite kind," I stammered timidly. My dad slid the yogurt over to me.

"I don't completely agree on this decision but, um, well . . ." my dad paused. "As a team, we have chosen to expand our work to," he paused again. "Well, to include you in our work."

I was breathless. Were they joking? Surely they had to be! They couldn't actually want me on the team, could they?

"Welcome aboard," Sam smiled. My eyes widened. Then the corners of my lips twitched. Soon I broke into a full-out grin and let loose a hearty laugh. After a pause, everyone joined in with me. I twirled around and kissed each of my parents, and Sam, on the cheeks. I was bubbling over with happiness as I danced around the table.

"You're still grounded, you know," my mom piped up.

"For five weeks," my dad added.

"Who cares?" I thought, and continued my merry dance.

"You won't be doing much field work, either," my dad informed me. "It's for your own safety."

"But you can help us with surveillance and that stuff, of course," my Uncle Sam reassured me.

I paused for a second. "Does being grounded include not getting to help you guys with a client?" I inquired.

"Well what else did-" began Michael, but Sam cut in.

"We're not going to let you miss out on your first assignment, **_right _**Mike?"

"No, of course not," my dad said, faking a smile.

"Now boys, Claire, lets get down to business. We can't leave those Jefferson brothers to fight this battle on their own," my mom reminded us.

"We already have a new client?" I asked, stunned.

"Yep. They called while you were on your way over. Your first official client, Claire," Sam smiled, congratulating me with a pat on the back. I smiled in return.

"Well, we should get going then. The Jeffersons are going to be lucky to have a new-and-improved team on their side," my dad commented, winking at me. "A new-and-improved team."

I beamed from ear to ear at this compliment.

**- THE END- **


	7. afterward

NOTE:

Thank you for reading my daughter's story. She was just 11 when she wrote it. I'm still proud of it, although she herself laughs at it now that she's 13 and exploring darker themes. Personally, I think she did a great job with voice and characters. I hope that you've enjoyed it.


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